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AFCOM’s highly anticipated annual report on the State of the Data Center Industry provides the most comprehensive look into the technologies, trends, and best practices that dominate the data center market. In addition to providing the most trusted insight into the adoption of new and existing technologies, the report provides C-level execs, facilities directors, and IT professionals with the tools and information to make reliable data center plans for the next year. In this keynote, we’ll deliver an analytical look at the challenges and opportunities faced by today’s data center, including cloud usage, edge computing, IoT, hyperscale, cooling, staffing, skill sets, and much more.

9:10am -
10:10am60 mins

Info

IT Infrastructure Technologies

Physical Security at the Rack Level: Improving The Security of Your Cabinets

SpeakerMike Fahy -
Commercial Product Manager,
Southco, Inc.

As the amount of data being stored grows exponentially, the risk of theft or corruption of that data grows as well. Industry and government have recognized that logically protecting data is not enough. Increased physical security of the servers holding that data is a critical part of the process to ensure data integrity and to ensure business and operational continuity. This presentation will discuss why increased physical security at the rack level aids in compliance to standards such as PCI-DSS, HIPAA, NERC CIP 014, FISMA, GDPR and others. We will discuss the pros and cons of the various solutions on the market today including standalone, wireless, networked and end to end solutions. We will review how these technologies are converging with other data center technologies such as PDUs, DCIM and BMS. We will review the various single and multi-factor authentication technologies such as pin, card and biometric and how they can be integrated with existing cabinets.

9:10am -
10:10am60 mins

Info

Data Center Strategies & Delivery Models

My Boss Said “Get to the Cloud,” But Which Workloads Should I Leave On-Prem?

SpeakerMor Cohen -
Chief Technology Officer, Cloud,
Turbonomic

IT and data center professionals are under incredible pressure to meet digital transformation goals, and “getting to the cloud” is typically an important component. The C-Level has never liked the fact that, in traditional data centers, they have to build (and pay for) infrastructure that can handle max application demand which their organization rarely needs. The promised elasticity of cloud is enticing, but in reality there are a number of pitfalls that are too-often overlooked. Moving to the cloud is complicated and takes a different set of knowledge from managing everything on-prem. Some workloads are fairly static while others are quite variable, and placing the wrong one in the wrong place can be costly to the organization, both in performance and real dollars. This presentation will outline how to identify which workloads to move, which to leave alone, and how to move workloads to ensure that the organization gets maximum value from its cloud journey.

9:10am -
10:10am60 mins

Info

Professional Development

It’s Time to Aim Lower: Zero Latency at the Edge Is Achievable at Scale

SpeakerAnton Kapela -
CTO,
EdgeMicro

The edge computing market is full of hype. Megawatts of hype. Gigawatts of hype. But when you push aside the marketing buzz, most of what’s being done in edge computing is rather modest in scope: small micro datacenters that will move parts of the cloud a bit closer to users. The goal—zero latency at the mobile edge—and there are three components to achieving it: Accelerating LTE airlink speed, eliminating the latency in network “back ends,” and moving content much closer to end users using a proven peering/colocation model. Anton Kapela, Chief Technology Officer of EdgeMicro, will delve into these three components, helping you understand the importance of adopting what already works in order to achieve the zero latency goal.

9:10am -
10:10am60 mins

Info

Design, Build, Operate & Control 1

The Secret Weapon for Smarter IT: Agile Construction

SpeakerNancy Novak -
SVP of Construction,
Compass Datacenters

Agile construction methodologies are dramatically changing how IT infrastructure is being built. Those construction practices will, in turn, give CIOs more flexibility in how they do IT planning and save money on a fast-growing aspect of their budgets at the same time. In this presentation, Nancy Novak, SVP of Construction for Compass Datacenters, will discuss how the melding of new technical capabilities and processes are placing more control in the hands of IT to get the data center that addresses their needs in months and not years.

In this session, the two speakers will discuss applications where challenges arose installing generator sets in extreme environments that had concerns of high elevation, high and low temperatures, dusty environments while investigating both indoor and outdoor generator set installation solutions. The presenters will discuss best practices for designing and selecting value added options for generator set installations and also best practices applying to maintenance of these systems.

The data center industry’s push over the last decade toward a more efficient and sustainable future has come at a serendipitous time when energy markets in the US and Canada are working to reduce demand via energy efficiency investments while integrating distributed energy resources (DERs) onto their energy grids in an attempt to diversify their fuel mixes. In this session, we will examine how data centers can take advantage of this pivotal time and monetize their existing energy assets through demand-side energy management. We’ll also explain how data centers can increase their own reliability and help maintain grid resiliency while earning significant revenue by participating in demand response and energy efficiency programs. Included in the presentation will be a detailed explanation of what demand-side energy management is as well as an examination of best practices currently being implemented by leading data centers in North America.

10:10am -
10:30am20 mins

Networking

Refreshment Break - Sponsored by Electronic Transport

10:30am -
11:30am60 mins

IT Infrastructure Technologies

How to Properly Do Rack Power Distribution Unit (PDU) Planning for IT Equipment

SpeakerJoseph Prisco -
Sr. Technical Staff Member,
IBM

10:30am -
11:30am60 mins

Info

Data Center Strategies & Delivery Models

Using CFD Modeling as a Decision Support Tool to Gain a Competitive Edge in the Co-Lo Market

SpeakerPaul Bemis -
President & CEO,
Applied Math Modeling, Inc.

A common design approach for high density data centers utilizes a non-raised floor design with air delivered from one side of the room to supply air to the rack inlets, and hot aisle containment delivering return air back through a ceiling return plenum. This design approach introduces some airflow management complexities that should be reviewed and analyzed prior to implementation. In this webinar we will use CFD modeling to review one of these designs and discuss the issues associated with insuring the design is efficient and reliable under all operating conditions.

10:30am -
11:30am60 mins

Info

Next-Generation Technologies

Don't Get Left Behind: Cabling Designs You Can Trust to Support Speeds of 40G to 400G

Present specific structured cabling designs to work with optics from 40G to 400G. Show cabling solutions to connect current generation of optics (40G & 100G) with a road map to connect NextGen optics (200G & 400G) with existing cabling plant. Also show cabling designs to breakout signals like 40G to 4x 10G or 100G to 4x 25G. Demonstrate the advantages of using singlemode fiber in the data center as it relates to the NextGen of optics.

In today’s quest for even faster deployment for mission critical facilities, it is imperative to find opportunities to reduce risk and compress schedules … but how can we do that in increasingly shortened timelines? By shifting commissioning activities left and creating fully functioning systems, it's resulting in faster commissioning and less risk in the end.

10:30am -
11:30am60 mins

Info

Resource Efficiency & Cost Control 1

Can Your Data Center Become Energy Efficient? Our Planet is Counting On It!

Continuous rapid growth and adoption of data hungry IT equipment is escalating the need for greater amounts of energy to keep data centers running and highly available. Researchers estimate 50 billion new devices will be connected to the internet by 2020 and will surpass 100 billion devices by 2025. The data center industry will be one of the top five energy consumers in the world, with 65% of power generation supplied by burning fossil fuels, producing 14% of global carbon emissions. Humans have generated a 33% increase in atmospheric carbon emissions since the onset of the industrial revolution and climatologist from around the world conclude this is the number one reason for continuous global warming. Data centers are a corner stone in the global economy with the expectation of 4,000 new mega data centers in the US by 2020. The ominous challenge must be a paradigm shift from rapid explosive data center growth to effectively and responsibly reducing data center energy consumption.

The discussion will focus on regulated vs. deregulated electricity markets and the impact of power market structure locating data centers. We'll discuss various approaches (as-produced, fixed contracts, load following, at the zone) to long-term power cost with or without renewable energy. We'll highlight a new arrangement data centers are employing to procure renewable energy from offsite projects, achieve renewable energy goals, manage their exposure to commodity prices, and increase budget certainty. The discussion will also highlight the role of intermediaries in these markets, and the structures and tools they can provide to achieve a more attractive allocation of risk among corporations, projects and intermediaries.

Who is handling and transporting your sensitive Mission Critical Equipment when you move? Are you trusting your servers, switches, cabinets, etc. to “Two Men and a Flapping Tarp”; are you moving them yourself in pickups; or are you using a professional electronic equipment mover with air-ride trucks and years of data center equipment handling and transportation experience? This Electronic Transport product session will give you some food for thought.

This presentation covers the best practices associated with infrastructure operations for the data center and includes security, mechanical systems, electrical systems and facility maintenance policies and procedures for a mission critical facility. We review critical facility code, design, and operational standards to specifically address facility conceptual design, space planning, building construction, and physical security best practices.

Industry terms “Digitization,” “Cloud,” and “IoT” have been around for long enough for companies to understand how the technology can impact our organizations but the impact of the today’ hot technology – Edge Computing – is still relatively unknown. But is Edge Computing right for your organization and are you ready to implement the technology? In particular, what Edge Computing mean for an organization’s data center? In this session, we’ll use three “Edge” projects executed in 2018 as guides as we explore the main drivers behind “edge” projects and why it was necessary for the businesses to create “edge” data center. We’ll also look at some of the technologies employed from the IT, network and infrastructure perspectives as well as execution methodologies for bringing “Edge” projects online.

The session covers recent data breach cases, the significant change to the legal landscape that is occurring in the cybersecurity and data breach arena and the fact that no company, whether small, medium or large, is immune from liability. It discusses current and future cybersecurity/data breach legislation and the FTC’s role in regulatory and enforcement actions related to cybersecurity and data breaches. It covers steps that businesses can take to protect themselves before, during and after a data breach and the legal significance of cybersecurity best practices. Finally, it discusses liability for third party vendor breaches and the ins and outs of cyber insurance.

12:40pm -
1:40pm60 mins

Info

Design, Build, Operate & Control 1

Legionella Bacteria and Microorganisms in Data Center HVAC Systems

SpeakerRob Rottersman, MS, CIH -
Principal,
Ramboll

The number of diagnosed cases of Legionnaires' disease has more than quadrupled since 2000, but this disease is still under reported. Legionella bacteria and other microorganisms can thrive in evaporative cooling systems and cooling towers. Are data centers at risk? The answer may be surprising. A number of new standards and guidelines have been published to help prevent, evaluate and control Legionella bacteria in building systems. This session will cover the history of Legionnaires' disease and review requirements and implementation techniques of management programs including ASHRAE – 188, CDC and OSHA guidance. It will also provide perspective on risks to occupants working in data centers with large evapoative air coolers or cooling towers.

This presentation explores an case study approach with an integrated design and facility management team to develop and deliver methods for energy and operational savings that result in the mitigation of risk and the evolution of a Smarter Data Center. This team has integrated over 25 years of relationship into an innovation that has delivered $100 million in savings over the past 10 years. The concept to reality is comprised of analytical data mining, realistic solutions and key behavioral change that evolve into the corporate core values for sustainability and energy conservation. The facts speak volumes of how simple day to day operations are the biggest opportunities to mitigate risk; save energy, reduce carbon footprints and provide value to stockholders, clients and employees.

We'll review the underlying concepts required to understand Single-phase, Liquid Immersion Cooling, how to implement high capacity data & compute capacity at the network edge by utilizing this new technology. We'll also explore how operators can lever this same technology to dramatically increase their density and compute while simultaneously reducing costs in typical data center applications. We'll review a business case including deployment and operations costs associated with this technology.

1:50pm -
2:50pm60 mins

Info

Data Center Strategies & Delivery Models

Driving Change: Lower Tiers, Tax Laws, and Shake-Ups

SpeakerCarrie Goetz -
Global Technology Director,
Paige DataCom

For sure, 2019 will be the year of change. More colos will sprout up in smaller cities. More colos will provide lower tier services. Tax law changes will impact balance sheets for leased data centers. IT becomes increasingly redundant due to the edge. Blockchain moves verification out of the data center. Procurement needs more IT skills, and IT needs more help. Waste (electrical and water) come to the forefront of compute. What will your data center look like in 2019? Cloud? Colo? Build? Retrofit?

1:50pm -
2:50pm60 mins

Info

Next-Generation Technologies

The Impact of Next-Gen Technologies Such as Hybrid Cloud, IoT, Edge Computing, Blockchain, and Cryptocurrency on the Data Center Industry

3) Hybrid cloud impact, growth opportunity, and outlook: How high are the barriers to entry?

4) The competitive landscape: Winners and losers, ongoing market consolidation, and an examination of the largest existential threats and opportunities to the data center industry

5) Emerging technologies and their impact on the future outlook of the data center industry. The impact of edge computing; Iot and IIoT; blockhain; and cryptocurrency

6) Cybersecurity's impact on the data center industry

1:50pm -
2:50pm60 mins

Info

Design, Build, Operate & Control 1

Project Pitfalls - Common Issues IT Should Avoid When Planning and Implementing a New Project

SpeakerTad Davies -
Principal,
Bick Consulting Services

Geared to IT centric attendees who have involvement or responsibility for a construction or remodel project, this educational session will take a holistic view of a project from planning through implementation. The focus will be educating the IT centric professional about subjects they may not be entirely comfortable with. Topics will include: understanding the vast number of design/construction/AHJs involved and why it matters; setting management expectations early; budgeting; holistic project scheduling vs construction only; and other issues.

When data center technicians work on energized equipment, they put their lives and others around them at risk. Why? To some extent the answer lies in human nature. It is infinitely easier to do the same thing over and over -- even if it is obviously wrong -- rather than make changes on an institutional level. And if those changes may interrupt business flow, they are even less likely to become enacted. But perhaps by analyzing how things are done now, who is at risk, and what is at stake, we can start to take steps forward to be a safer industry for everyone involved in it.

To push the boundaries of innovation and lead the way in sustainability, Infosys undertook a case study of a Tier 3, 300kW data center in Bangalore, India to show that PUE of <1.1 was attainable using direct evaporative cooling with rear door heat exchangers (RDHX). The PUE of 1.06 was achieved with the initial installation, but the PUE increased due to excessive air leaks around the RDHX caused by movement and changes in the rack mounted components. This resulted in air leaks bypassing the RDHX and necessitating the use of the chilled water loop to reduce the water temperature through the RDHX. The effectiveness of current refinements will be presented as well as the resultant PUE. In addition to the design used in this case study, a related alternative configuration will be discussed which will allow more flexibility in the loading of the data center racks while maintaining the low PUE and passive nature of the liquid-air heat exchangers.

Human innovation is causing a technological tsunami. By 2020, over 50 billion digital devices will be interconnected, worldwide. Power, colo, telco, cloud are at the heart. We can either ride the wave or be crushed by it. Join Switch’s EVP of Policy, Sam Castor, as he discusses “Switch, Sustainability and Tomorrow”, to learn more about Switch’s patented, innovative designs, ensuring that the data that runs the planet does not ruin the planet.

In order to meet corporatewide demands for efficiency, FedEx has embarked on a plan to reduce data center management costs through a hybrid platform strategy, increased automation, and unique partnerships that include outreach to local university students for managed services. FedEx technology executive Gary Bronson shares the company’s next-generation plans for managing workloads both on-premise and through partners; increasing the use of automation and data science; and outsourcing non-critical functions – while also helping build a new generation of IT and data center professionals.